Lightning blamed for Chesapeake house fire

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Chesapeake, Va. - Charred wood beams, rubble and a gaping hole are all that's left of a Chesapeake couple's back bedroom and attic. Fire crews say lightning hit the two-story home on Pine Bark Drive during an afternoon storm Tuesday.

"One gentleman said it woke him up it was so loud,” says Battalion Chief Barry Jennings. “He said it just shook him. So evidently something struck nearby."

Jennings says thankfully, the couple was out and no one was injured.

"We’ve been taking things out salvaging what we could," he says.

Jennings says the lightning struck the attic, starting a fire that spread downstairs. The back roof almost completely burned off.

"The first crews that got here could hear it burning above their heads when they went upstairs," Jennings says.

He says a garbage truck driver noticed the smoke and called it in around 3:40 p.m. Tuesday.